Tag Archives: Recycling

Following successful trials, Vegware announces today it has received the Compost Manufacturing Alliance (CMA) approval on a wide range of its plant-based compostable foodservice packaging. These highly respected American standards provides official recognition and acceptance of the Vegware products as compostable by both CMA-I facilities and Cedar Grove’s covered processing system.

Testing compostables

The CMA and its affiliated partner, Cedar Grove Composting in Washington State, field testing results demonstrate that products manufactured by Vegware are acceptable in operations and processes.

The CMA is a partnership of the top U.S. compost manufacturers, providing field validation of compostable feed stocks within real world processing technologies. Cedar Grove Composting is a Seattle-based, family-owned business producing nutrient-rich compost.

As composting collections and processing grows in the US and globally, ensuring foodservice packaging works as feedstock in modern large-scale composting facilities is essential. This way, operations at each step of the organics recycling process runs smoothly.

Vegware believes that compostables solve the issue of food contamination on catering disposables. Compostable packaging and food waste can be recycled together in industrial composting, leaving other dry recycling cleaner for processing.

Mixed materials challenge the recycling process

Conventional foodservice packaging is notoriously challenging to recycle as it is a combination of materials.

Any raw paper or board materials contaminated with food waste or other mixed materials can undermine the full benefits of recycling paper.

Food waste’s negative effect on recycling

The guide states that surface staining of packaging is processable, but leftovers or food attached to the packaging is unacceptable for recycling. Vegware’s experience in working with the waste sector is that both the packaging and food waste are then sent to waste disposal.

Vegware is aware that uncontaminated PET water bottles have an established recycling infrastructure, but a cardboard sandwich wedge with a plastic lining and window and contaminated with food waste doesn’t.

The plastic problem

Over 3-5% plastic contamination puts pressure on the process. For example, from Vegware’s work with foodservice, the windows in sandwich wedges and plastic linings in coffee cups are a considerable recycling issue.

This eliminates the complication of mixed materials. All our plant-based catering disposables can be composted together with food leftovers and baked-on goods, turning it into nutrient-rich compost for farmers’ fields. See UK regions with composting here.

Now here is a huge opportunity. Do you believe compostables have a role to play?

The UK Government is about to completely overhaul our waste systems, and are seeking YOUR views.

This is your chance to tell Defra, the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, if you want to see compostables become part of mainstream UK waste collections, and see the Government encouraging the use of renewable, plant-based materials.

We don’t think it’s okay to carry on relying on export to deal with the UK’s contaminated low-grade packaging waste. We have composting facilities here in the UK, but just need to develop our collection infrastructure.

To celebrate World Environment Day we were invited to attend an event set up by Total to speak to children from an Aberdeen school. The focus of the day was to educate and raise awareness of recycling to the children through a range of engaging activities.

The kids were treated to a tour of Total’s recycling set-up and we brought along some Vegware products and our interactive ‘Bin Detective’ activity. This involved a presentation from a member of our Environmental team where we looked at the benefits of recycling and composting. We then tested out their knowledge through introducing them to a variety of Vegware products.

One of the highlights of the day for the kids was the introduction of the ‘Smoothie Bike’. The premise behind this being that the pedalling of the bike generated the energy needed to start the smoothie maker. A delicious smoothie proved to be the perfect reward for their hard work. We had a great day at Total’s event and we’re sure the kids took on board some useful recycling knowledge.